Adventures?? -- Bequia and Tobago Cays

Last Cruising Log   -   Next Cruising Log

The last two weeks have been spent traveling up and down the Windward Islands with some friends from the States.  We ran into big seas, strong winds and the "Northern Swells".  It was definitely not our normal trip.  We had unbelievable swells, a leak, a missing boat and a dead body.  Read on....

We left Marigot Bay under blue skies and headed down to the Pitons which would be our jumping off point for a 50 mile trip south.  The anchorage at the foot of the Pitons is really spectacular.  We put up the hammock and settled in for a quite evening aboard the boat.  It is fun to watch people the first time they get in the hammock.  They can't help but laugh.  It is kind of like being on an amusement park ride.  You do nothing and you keep rocking.  The more the boat rocks, the higher you swing.  It is really fun.

During the night, the Northern Swells kicked up and the anchorage was really rolly by morning.  We were glad to get under way.  Along with the Northern Swells comes strong winds and big seas.  As we were heading south we got the boost from the seas and spent a lot of the time surfing down the swells.  The winds kept us moving even in areas that are usually pretty calm so we had a great day sailing.

e arrived in Bequia in the late afternoon and found a nice spot to anchorage near a pretty beach.  We had two young boys row out to our boat and sing us a song to welcome us to Bequia.  They were cute and it was a nice welcome.   Bequia is one of our favorite spots.  They have a great walkway along the water front.  At high time, the walkway is sometimes pretty wet.  It wanders along the shore line with palm trees and  lots of little shops and restaurants along the way.  The picture on the left shows a part of the walkway.   The one on the right is the Frangipani restaurant.  We've spent many an hour in those white chairs just enjoying watching the people and the anchorage.

Bequia is well-known for the model boats they make.  They are really a piece of art.  If you pick the right time of day to go to the shops, you can watch the men carve them.  They are all hand-made and very intricate.

Bequia used to be an active whaling station.  It is whaling season between February and April.  Humpback and Sperm whales move south during the whaling season to mate.  There are some whalers left in Bequia and they are allowed one whale per year.  They hunt in open boats using hand thrown harpoons.  We were there on Sunday so we weren't able to see any of them men head out to hunt.

ustique is our next stop. Mustique is a privately owned island that has homes for the "rich and famous".   (Mick Jagger, Princess Margaret, David Bowie).  The picture to the left if of two boutiques, as well as an ice-cream shop.  The anchorage is off a beach with beautiful turquoise water.  We took a taxi ride to the windward side of the island and saw some really beautiful beaches.  There is a rock pathway between the beaches and you can walk on the reef to another small island.  I really want to come back and spend some time on Mustique.    There are supposed to be lots of nice hikes and you can rent mopeds to get around the island.

We had another of our "exciting" adventures here.  Allen noticed the bilge pump was running every so often so we lifted the floor boards to see what was going on.  It turns out the stuffing box was leaking.  I looked it up in the repair book, but ours was not the same type.  The one thing it did say was you can take a LOT of water on fast.  (What shall I save before the boat sinks??!!)  The island has no boat yard and we weren't sure what to do so Allen got in the dingy and went over to another boat to see if someone knew more about what to do.  The guy was great.    He's the skipper aboard a beautiful 60 foot boat and he came over to take a look.  He got the leak fixed and had me turn on the engine and put it into forward and reverse to see if there was any problem.  We were all ready to head back for repairs, but he said he thought things were fine for now, but that it was a warning sign and we should get it looked into.  As he was leaving he added that he was going back to HIS boat and it is easy to say things are fine when you're going back to another boat. (comforting words.... but we ARE still afloat)   

That evening, as we were sitting in the cockpit enjoying the stars, we had bats flying into the boat.   We either had about 30 bats visit or we had one bat coming and going all evening.  They would fly in and spend about 30 seconds then fly out. (I slept fine, they're small... )

We were still dealing with the Northern Swells and the anchorages were just not comfortable.  I wouldn't be surprised if we were having a 20 degree roll half of the time!!  We even had bad conditions in Tobago Cays which is one of nicest spots in the area.  The Tobago Cays which is a group of small deserted islands protected from the sea by a horseshoe reef.  The reef colors are unbelievable shades of blue and the beaches have white sands.  The snorkeling is great  BUT, we had 30 knot winds blowing through the anchorage.  Who wants to swim and snorkel off the boat in 30 know winds!!!

We spent the night and decided to head back to St. Lucia where the anchorages are more protected. We stopped in Bequia to clear customs and spend the night.   Now for our next big "excitement".  After going to shore to clear customs we came back to where we anchored and the boat wasn't there!!!  NOT A GOOD THING.   Thankfully we saw the boat about 300 yards away.  We asked the guy near the boat how close we came to them and he said within inches.  We aren't sure exactly what happened.  We know the anchor drug, but the chain was also all the way out and the snub line was still on the anchor chain when we brought it in.

Well, we re-anchored in better holding ground and settled in for the night.  About 3 AM we heard 5 blasts (which means danger) and Allen flew on deck.   He was afraid we were dragging again.  It turns out another boat was dragging into the boat we almost hit.   (I bet the guy didn't sleep that night!!)

In the morning we were under way by 7am.  We had 60 miles planned for the day so we wanted an early start.  Now for the next "adventure"??  We were sailing along between Bequia and St. Vincent when we spotted something in the water.  We thought it might be a seal.  It came within a couple feet of the boat and it was a dead body.  Pretty gross....  We decided not to report the body as the police here are unpredictable and we weren't sure what would happen if we tried to report it.  So we kept sailing.

I've really gotten used to being at the helm.  We had 30+ knot winds at 8-10 foot seas between St. Vincent and St. Lucia.  The rest of the "crew" was huddled under the dodger trying to stay dry and I was getting drenched as we pounded into the swells.  I was having FUN!!   This is a far cry from our first trip from Tortola when I was rather timid in these conditions.  I  had really wanted to sail the complete 60 miles, but after 8 hours I needed a bread so Allen took over once we got in the lee of St. Lucia.  I went out on deck and just relaxed and watched the scenery.  We pulled back into Marigot about 5:30.  It was nice to be "home".

We took long showers at the Marina then headed to the Shack for dinner and dancing. 

Rodney Bay.   Spinnakers, water taxi, shopping. Cleaning calcium off the lines in the head in Rodney Bay - nice way to entertain guests.